activa-t Chapter 51 The War Begins!
Chapter 51 The War Begins!
Mangshui Bay is only half a day's walk from Lianjiang City. The so-called Mangshui is a large river that connects to the West Sea.
The huge bay was transformed into a port town, hence the name Mangshui Bay.
Besides the town, dozens of fishing villages around it also rely on this bay for their livelihood.
Even Lianjiang City was no exception, becoming wealthy through trade at this waterfront wharf.
Of course, those were all past glories.
Now the western border is repeatedly invaded by Moon people's ships, and more and more mountain bandits and river pirates are frequently plundering without any sense of morality.
Consequently, the number of merchant ships has decreased, and the once bustling and lively docks and ports are now much quieter.
this day.
On the sea, mist filled the air.
Suddenly, a large ship with a silver-white coating burst out of the water and appeared silently on the bay.
Then came the second one, and the third one!
Every large ship was packed with people.
These people had either blue or white hair, pale and bloodless skin, and their eyes had a hint of blue light.
Although they look human, they are quite different from ordinary people, especially from the citizens of the Great Wu Dynasty.
Most of them were clad in armor and helmets, wielding spears and greatswords, and the clanging of metal against metal was constant as they moved.
"The Lunarians have arrived!"
"Quickly, go back and report to the magistrate!"
Several messenger birds flew away in the sky, while scouts rode swiftly on horseback on the ground.
News of the appearance of Lunar ships in Mangshui Bay spread quickly.
On the deck of one of the ships, a burly man, over two meters tall with long, flowing hair, was coldly watching the approaching shore.
His hair was jet black, and his appearance also revealed that he was a subject of the Great Wu Dynasty.
"Have we arrived?" A tall man clad in silver armor approached the bow of the ship and asked.
He spoke in the language of the Great Wu Dynasty, asking the burly man beside him.
"From here, it's thirty li to the east to Lianjiang County," Shao Qilin said.
"If all goes well, my second and third brothers will be in the county town to provide support, making it easier for you all to attack the city."
"Very good. When the city falls, as agreed, the magistrate will be handed over to you for disposal," Na Yueren nodded.
Shao Qilin's gaze fell on a large mountain on the edge of the bay.
This mountain is called Wangjiang Mountain.
And he was none other than the former king of Black Wind Stronghold on Wangjiang Mountain!
......
In the county town, detachments of county soldiers were rapidly assembling at the city gate, while patrol battalions climbed the city walls to transport up war supplies.
Bows and arrows, crossbows, catapults, and molten gold.
It was as if a great battle was imminent, about to erupt at any moment!
"It's faster than I imagined." Zhao An sighed inwardly at the speed at which the Moon People's army landed, as he listened to the news coming from the city.
As a result, the entire Lianjiang County was suddenly at a critical juncture of life and death!
Under the heavy shadow of war, no one, whether in the inner or outer city, could laugh anymore.
"Brother Zhao, the government has posted a notice saying that they are recruiting villagers to participate in the war. Everyone will be rewarded after the war. If someone kills a Yue person and is brave and meritorious, there will be a big reward."
Li Gou'er ran back from outside and said to Zhao An.
"Are you going?" Zhao An asked without looking up, wiping the two knives he carried.
"If Brother Zhao goes, I'll go too." Li Gou'er swallowed hard, but still mustered his courage to say it.
"Aren't you afraid of dying?"
"fear death."
"Then stay home and take good care of Chunzi," Zhao An said after putting away his knife.
afternoon.
A large crowd had already gathered on the eastern city wall.
There were well-trained government soldiers, as well as many recruited volunteers from the city.
Each person was issued a bow and a quiver of arrows for the purpose of defending the city.
"Don't shoot arrows randomly, follow orders and commands." Several officers walked back and forth, repeatedly reminding them.
Although these temporarily recruited militiamen have limited combat strength, for the defense of the city, if there are sufficient war supplies, it is good to have more manpower, even if they are just standing on the city wall to make up the numbers and boost morale.
"Brave warrior, which bow do you wish to take?" Under the city gate, a constable looked at the tall and burly Zhao An and immediately asked.
Zhao An was dressed in a smart black outfit, with a clear water sword at his waist and a hundred-forged heavy sword hanging on his back.
"Bring me the heaviest, strongest bow," Zhao An said, glancing at the pile of bows.
"Then this is the only bow we have. Please, brave warrior, give it a try." The officer handed over a strong bow and asked Zhao An to draw it.
Don't wait until you're on the city wall and the fighting starts to realize you can't draw your bow.
Without a word, Zhao An raised his hand and drew his bow like a full moon in front of the constable, effortlessly and gracefully.
"What strength you possess, brave man!" the officer exclaimed.
The standard equipment for ordinary soldiers is a bow with a draw weight, and being able to draw it fully is considered good.
Those with a foundation in martial arts and who have trained their strength can draw a bow with a draw weight of two stones or more, but without the support of internal energy, they will be exhausted after firing only a few arrows.
A man like Zhao An, who can easily draw a three-stone bow, is a rare sight in the army. He must either be born with superhuman strength or be a genuine martial arts master.
"Are there any heavier bows?" Zhao An felt that this strong bow was also light and not so easy to handle, so he couldn't help but ask.
"Uh, this..." The officer in charge of distributing the bows and arrows shook his head.
He didn't have any bows with a capacity of three shi or more, and the county magistrate wouldn't allow them to be issued casually.
"I have one here, can you pull it?" Suddenly a voice came from not far away.
Zhao An turned his head and saw a general in armor but without a helmet looking at him in front of the hundreds of county soldiers lined up in formation.
That was clearly what the general said.
Without wasting any words, Tao Jinyi threw the large bow in his hand from a distance of more than ten meters.
Zhao Anwen took it steadily, only to feel a sudden weight in his hand.
The large bow is made of a special type of wood, not an ordinary material for bow making, making it exceptionally heavy and hard.
This bow alone is so heavy that an ordinary person probably couldn't even lift it!
Zhao An plucked the bowstring with his fingers, and the bowstring's resilience was undoubtedly extraordinary.
I tried to pull it, and I felt that the difficulty of drawing this bow was probably no less than lifting a heavy cauldron!
At that moment, Zhao An stopped trying and immediately lowered his stance, gripped the bow with his left hand, drew the string with his right, and exerted force.
He poured in all his brute strength, and the bow immediately creaked.
In no time at all, he had drawn the bow to its full extent!
This scene also drew many gasps from the county soldiers.
They often dealt with bows and arrows, and although they didn't know the specifics, they could tell that this bow weighed far more than three stones!
Their generals were equipped with six-stone bows, but the bow carried by this gentleman from the prefectural city must be even heavier!
And indeed it is; it is a nine-stone bow!
A single arrow drawn from a fully drawn bow is enough to pierce several people and shatter rocks, making it no less powerful than the heavy crossbows on the city walls!
"A good bow." Zhao An was satisfied.
Tao Jinyi wasn't surprised that Zhao An could pull the bow, after all, the boy had the feat of swinging a large cauldron with one arm during the martial arts examination.
"I only hope that you can use this bow to help kill more foreign enemies and keep the city safe."
As he spoke, he handed over several bags of iron arrows from the horse's back.
Ordinary wooden arrows cannot withstand the force of this nine-stone bow!
......